The Perfect Roast Chicken
A crispy, garlicy, herby roast chicken just coming out of the oven is one the easiest ways to transport me to my happy place. This dish evokes in me so many wonderful memories wrapped up in taste, texture, smell, time and even place. It is a Tuesday night years ago and my girls are at the table (our dining room table was and still is, THE table for all activity requiring a flat surface) engrossed in art projects while I look on from a warm and cozy kitchen preparing their meal. It might also be a beautiful Saturday, perfect for a picnic of cold roast chicken, crusty bread, cheese, fruit and crisp white Bordeaux. It is perfection!
Ingredients
-1 5- to 6-pound free range roasting chicken
-Kosher salt
-Freshly ground black pepper
-1 large bunch fresh thyme OR 3 tbl dried herbs such as tyhme, oegano, Herb de Provence
-1 lemon, halved-zest the lemon before cutting
-1 head garlic, cut in half crosswise plus 6 cloves crushed
-1 Spanish onion, thickly sliced
-2 carrots, peeled and thickly sliced
-1 fennel bulb thickly sliced
-1 small rutabaga, peeled and thickly sliced
-1/2 c. extra virgin olive oil
Method
Remove the chicken from the fridge 30 minutes before you want to cook it, to let it come up to room temperature. 2.
Preheat the oven to 475 degrees
Wash, peel and roughly chop the vegetables. Break the garlic bulb into cloves, leaving them unpeeled and place all of the vegetables, garlic and herbs into the middle of a roasting pan and toss with enough olive oil to coat.
In a small bowl combine the 3 crushed garlic cloves , lemon zest, dried herbs and salt and pepper and 1/4 c. olive oil
Using a small spatula or the handle side of a teaspoon, gently create space between the skin and the meat of the bird. Be careful not to tear the skin.
Add salt and pepper to the cavity of the chicken along with the halved head of garlic and then gently add the herb/olive oil mixture under the skin, smoothing out evenly as you go. Rub the outside of the bird as well with this mixture. You can add the leftover lemon halves to the inside of the chicken along with any fresh rosemary or thyme you may have in the garden.
Tuck the wings under and tie the legs together and place in the pan with the vegetables.
Drizzle the chicken with oil and season well with sea salt and black pepper, then rub all over the bird.
Place the roasting pan in the oven, then turn the heat down immediately to 400 degrees and cook for 1 hour 20 minutes.
Baste the chicken halfway through cooking and if the vegetables look dry, add a splash of water to the tray to stop them from burning.
When the chicken is cooked, take the tray out of the oven and transfer the chicken to your platter to rest for 15 minutes or so.
Carve and serve with a creamy parmesan risotto.
Wine Pairings
White Burgundy-the acidity and slight umami richness of Burgundian Chardonnay performs the perfect balancing act with all of that delicious, herb-infused chicken fat
Pinot Noir-My favorites are from Burgundy in France; they have structure and acidity without too much alcohol, fruit, or tannins that could overpower the meat. Pinots from Oregon, New Zealand, Germany, or Northern Italy would also work.